This is the value wine site!

A hot day in San Francisco & I’m running low on white wine! No time to panic or to get something else.

I’m on my way to the Sausalito Ferry which sails from the San Francisco Ferry Building at 5:30.

I’ve got a bottle I picked up at Target out of curiosity, I’ll take that and pack it in a FedEx Padded Envelope with some blue ice! This bottle is Berringer White Zinfandel 2010 . . . Berrigner is a respectable brand by under $5 at Target and Safeway makes me skittish.

I quickly pack this and some cups and off I go.

When I arrive at ferry boat and we’re seated I open the bottle. We pass it around and all remark on the brand . . . I haven’t told them it’s provenance (where I bought it). It’s nicely chilled in the Padded FedEx Envelope (free and fairly good insulation!).

We open and pour. Definitely okay! It’s a little sweet but it does have flavor and goes down easy right after opening! We sit and enjoy the highly unusual warmth as the ferry crosses the San Francisco Bay and the tourists enjoy themselves.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 4th, 2011 at 12:28 am and is filed under Rose / Blush, Sweet Wine, White Wine.
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How do we pick our wine?

We limit our reviews to 2 categories:
- Wine under $5/bottle
- Unusual liquor
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We select our wine from large retailers of wine:
- Trader Joe's
- BevMo
- Safeway
- CVS and Rite Aid
================
We select 2nd and 3rd tier national brands. We skip big varietals major brands since they have already are well covered. We do make an exception for small runs from a larger winery (such as Sutter Home White Zinfandel)

We try to make sure they are in regular production and not 'excess' from a major vintner which can be a very limited run.
This means we tend towards varieties that are different.

The other item we cover are distilled liquor not covered on other sites. Recently we covered Chinese overproof (100+) white lightning, a raw distilled spirit of questionable provenance. This is not covered. Earlier we covered Newfie Screech, a Canadian distilled spirit made by putting distilled fermented beet juice into abandoned Port and Sherry kegs and leaving on the beach of Newfoundland for several months.

Picking a wine – anywhere, anytime!

Need a bottle for something? Many times I don't speak the language & can't read the label!

Most markets and stores have 300 wines. The clerks' can use a box cutter and a bar code reader.

QUESTION: How can get a decent wine?

ANSWER: - Look for 3 things:

1.) Price! This is IMPORTANT! Scan the selves, look for the cheapest wine and add a couple of bucks. If you want higher end double the number!

2.) Next - heavy or light? - Heavy alcohol is 12%+ and light is 11% or less. If it's cold or a young crowd go heavy, if it's warm or older crowd go light. We're now down to say 20 bottles (some will fall in the middle).

3.) "It Factor" - Look at the BACK of bottle. Is there an essay on the wine, picture of wine maker?) GREAT! The people making are proud of their product! Usually any of these is good.

Eyeball them and pick the one that strikes your fancy!!

========>>> SHORTCUT! Look at people's shopping carts, if you see several people with the same wine - that's likely a good wine!